Mahler: Symphony No. 8 in E-Flat Major "Symphony of a Thousand" (Live)

Of all Mahler’s super-sized symphonies, his Symphony No. 8—promoted (to the composer’s dismay) as “The Symphony of a Thousand” before its premiere—is truly a behemoth. Conductor Osmo Vänskä, talking to Apple Music Classical, describes it as “a huge production with hundreds of people onstage—it feels very much like an opera for the concert hall as opposed to an opera performed in an opera house.” Besides eight soloists and two full-sized choirs as well as a children’s choir or two (Vänskä’s recording involves both the Angelica Cantanti Youth Choir and the Minnesota Boychoir), Mahler’s Eighth also requires a very large orchestra: at least four of each woodwind instrument, a huge brass section including several off-stage players, and a rich array of percussion and keyboard instruments. Singing against such a panoply of instruments itself presents a challenge, as Vänskä admits: “The soloists are asked to sing incredibly loudly at times because the texture underneath is very thick. However, there are also moments of extreme intimacy, and I think we were able to deliver those contrasts very successfully.” Such a community of musicians surely demands a reciprocal community of an audience. Certainly Vänskä and his forces appreciated performing and recording the work live in the Concert Hall, Minneapolis, especially in June 2022 when COVID-preventative lockdowns were easing off: “As we all learned during the early days of the pandemic—when most of us were playing without a live audience—having people in the hall adds a whole other essential element to the concert experience. There is a certain energy and excitement that is quite palpable, and I was thrilled that we could record this work in a concert setting as opposed to a typical studio recording.” Not surprisingly, Mahler’s Eighth has also been dubbed a “Mass for the Masses”. Indeed, it is the most overtly religious of Mahler’s impressive cycle of symphonies. Part I presents the medieval hymn “Veni, creator spiritus”, turned into an exuberant, large-scale vocal and choral outburst of joy. And Vänskä has no hesitation in comparing it with another great choral symphony: “It is reminiscent of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, only with even larger forces, and I think that makes it even more exciting for the audience, not just for the musicians involved in the performance.” In Part II, the Minnesota Orchestra begins by painting a darker and more foreboding landscape. This is the prelude to Mahler’s setting of the concluding scene of Goethe’s Faust, Part II, in which the great German poet has the legendary anti-hero borne heavenward by angels to have his soul redeemed and to reach Paradise as hymned in Part I. It brings the work round full circle. It is not only that concept that unites these two texts, as one of Vänskä’s soloists unexpectedly became another link for the Symphony’s two halves. “We initially had a great cast of eight singers,” he recalls. “Unfortunately, after the first rehearsal day, one of the sopranos tested positive for COVID and she was unable to continue with the project. Carolyn Sampson agreed to step in to learn a new part and was able to perform both soprano parts during the concerts. She was our hero!”